"iditarod" news and stories

More than five dozen Mississippi hot tamales have been secreted away in the snows of northwest Alaska.

The tamales from Solly's, a Vicksburg institution, were recently shipped to musher Mike Suprenant, who plans to participate in next week's 1,150-mile Iditarod race. Since it's impossible for a team of 16 huskies to efficiently drag the 2,000 pounds of food needed to keep them and their driver fed, organizers require racers to stow their supplies at food drops, reachable only by helicopters and sleds.

Dogs typically feast on a fine-tuned chow of moose steak, lamb trimmings, chicken skin and seal oil, but mushers are free to eat whatever they choose. Jewel McCain, owner of Solly's, surmises her tamales' cayenne-driven spices and high fat content will help keep Suprenant warm.